COMPARISON OF NORMAL AND ASTHMATIC SUBJECTS' RESPONSES TO SULPHATE POLLUTANT AEROSOLS

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Abstract
Epidemiological studies support an association between elevated levels of sulphates and acute respiratory disease. To determine if these pollutants produce airway hyperreactivity, 16 normal and 17 asthmatic subjects inhaled a control NaCl aerosol and the following sulphates: ammonium sulphate, sodium bisulphate, ammonium bisulphate and sulphuric acid. A Lovelace generator produced particles with an average MMAD of ∼1.0 μm (σ g ≃2.0) and concentrations of 0.1 and 1.0 mg m −3 . By double-blind randomization, all subjects breathed these aerosols for a 16-min period. To determine if sulphate inhalation caused increased reactivity to a known bronchoconstrictor, all subjects inhaled carbachol following each 16-min exposure. Before, during and after exposure, we performed pulmonary function studies. When compared with NaCl, sulphate (1 mg m −3 ) produced significant reductions in airway conductance and flow rates in asthmatics. The two most sensitive asthmatics demonstrated changes even at 0.1 mg m −3 sulphate. To a far more significant degree, the bronchoconstrictor action of carbachol was potentiated by sulphates more or less in relation to their acidity in normals and asthmatics.

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